A judge in the US District Court for the District of Columbia on Thursday found the US Department of Defense (DOD) in contempt for failing to videotape the testimony of Guantanamo Bay detainee Mohammed Al-Adahi. Al-Adahi had petitioned for habeas relief in 2005, which the court granted in …

The Russian Supreme Court upheld a lower court decision to shut down the Taganrog Jehovah's Witness congregation and ban the distribution of 34 Jehovah's Witness publications on Tuesday. Both the Jehovah's Witness congregation and the publications are "extremist," the Supreme Court said in its decision. In response to …

Iranian human rights violations following the disputed presidential election in June were among the worst in the past 20 years, according to a report published Thursday by Amnesty International (AI). The report, "Iran: Election contested, repression compounded," contains testimony from individuals detained during the protests that ensued after the election. …

The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) announced Wednesday that its largest anonymous donor will be sharply cutting donations next year in light of the current economic crisis. The ACLU released a statement from philanthropist David Gelbaum in which he publicly identified himself and explained that his "investments in alternative, clean …

The European Court of Human Rights (EHCR) held a hearing Wednesday in a case brought by three women alleging that current Irish abortion laws violate their rights under the European Convention on Human Rights. The three women, who all traveled to the UK to have abortions, lodged the complaint in …

Supporters of a New Jersey same-sex marriage bill decided Wednesday night to delay a State Senate vote scheduled for Thursday. The bill's sponsors, Democratic senators Raymond Lesniak and Loretta Weinberg, withdrew the bill from the senate agenda, saying they wanted to allow a hearing in the general assembly before the vote took …

Chinese authorities on Tuesday executed a former general manager of a major Chinese securities trading corporation who was convicted of embezzling and misappropriating more than USD $14 million. Yang Yanming was convicted and sentenced to death in December 2005 in the Beijing No. 1 Intermediate People's Court. In April, the Higher People's Court of Beijing denied his …

The US Department of Justice (DOJ) announced Wednesday that Kuwaiti Guantanamo Bay detainee Fouad Al Rabiah has been transferred to the control of the Kuwaiti government. Al Rabiah, a Kuwaiti national, had been held at Guantanamo Bay for nearly eight years under suspicion of aiding al Qaeda and the Taliban. The transfer …

The US Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit ruled Wednesday that a US citizen who served as Bosnian ambassador to the UN cannot be extradited to Sarajevo to face charges of embezzlement. The appeals court reversed a decision by the US District Court for the Southern District of New York, which had …